Maria Sakkari has joined several other players in their critique of the tennis balls used at the Citi Open in Washington.
Quite a few players have struggled with controlling the tennis balls in Washington especially after they have been used for a few games. The more you play with them the bigger they get which makes it really hard to hit through them.
You have to kind of hit harder but then it makes it pretty hard to control them so it's been a struggle for several players. Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe and Jessica Pegula all criticized the ball and Maria Sakkari joined in on the party following her win over the American.
I mean, the balls haven't been the best that we have played in the season, because they just get very, very big. But at the same time, it's something that I cannot control coming into a tournament.
You know, these are the balls we have, so we cannot, you know, do anything about it. It's humid, so that's why they get a lot bigger than different ones. But, yeah, conditions are tough, especially today, they were not easy. It was pretty hot out there.
Sakkari won't have to endure the conditions for too much longer as there is only one more match to play. It's a big one as neither player ever won a WTA 500 trophy so both will be motivated. Sakkari has dominated the matchup against Gauff so far which puts her in a good spot ahead of the match.
She's had some troubles in the past in finals (1-6) but the hope is that this goes smoothly. Taking on a native player will be very tough but she overcame that against Pegula so it won't be anything new. The final is one of the first matches of Saturday’s schedule, so stay tuned.
0 Comments